Window closure or similar fitting



May 27, 1941. A. F. NYE '2,243,771

May 27, 1941. I A, F. NYE 22433171 WINDOW CLOSURE OR SIMILAR FITTING Filed Sept. 29, 1938 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTOR.

XM A oLgNEY.

May 27, 1941. A. F. NYE

WINDOW CLOSURE OR SIMILAR FITTING Filed Sept. 29, 1938 -3 Sheets-Sheet E5 Ar' lglllll a-W-11li WW Patented May 27, 1941 i WINDOW CLOSURE O-R SIMILAR FITT'ING Alvin F. Nye, Rochester, N. Y., assignor, by mesne assignments, to Harry B. Lawson, East Rochester, N. Y.

Application september 29, 1938, serial No. 232,331

12 claims. (C1. 156.-28)

My present invention relates to window fittings and more particularly to curtains and similar flexible closures for window openings that are adapted to be raised and lowered as occasion demands. The invention is particularly applicable to long openings and closures therefor more or less inaccessible for manual manipulation by usual methods such as the windows of auditoriums and other public places, and the improvements are directed in part toward novel arrangements of mechanism whereby the closure may be raised and lowered by the Operator from a distant point and toward the construction of that mechanism and driving gear associated therewith. To these and other ends, the invention resides in certain improvements and combinations of parts, all as Will be hereinafter more fully described, the novel features being pointed out in the vclaims at the end of this specification.

In the drawings:

Fig. 1 is a front and inside elevation of a window casing provided with a fitting Constructed in accordance with and illustrating one embodiment of my invention;

Fig. 2 is a greatly enlarged fragmentary view, taken from the casing side, of the upper end of one of the lateral guides;

Fig. 3 is a fragmentary enlarged rear or inside elevation of the lower portion of the closure and frame, broken away; Y

Fig. 4 is a further enlarged fragmentary horizontal section, brokenaway, through the closure and; casing, showing the lower rail of Fig. 3 in top plan view and also partly in horizontal section in a still lower plane;

Fig. 5 is a fragmentary elevation, broken away, of the parts shown in Fig. 3 but viewed from the front or inside and on a further enlarged scale;

Fig. 6 is a still further enlarged fragmentary detail of a ratchet mechanism shown in dotted lines in Fig. 5;

Fig. 7 is a fragmentary vertical section, further enlarged, taken on the line I l-Il of Fig. 5;

Fig.` 8 is a similar section taken on the line l2-l2 of Fig. 5, and

Fig. 9 is an enlarged central vertical section taken centrally through the closure and casing and in a parallel plane through other parts, this view showing a modification of the driving means for elevating the closure but the view being other- Wise consistent with the preceding figures.

Similar referencer numerals throughout theV several views indicate the same parts.

element broadly as a closure, it consists in the illustrated embodiment of a heavy dark curtain, such as is used in auditoriums and the like for temporarily excluding daylight, as in motion picture projection, and I will, therefore, henceforth use the term curtain although it is to be understood that it might be a Woven fly screen or I similar flexible sheet.

To first give a general idea of the Construction and mode of operation of the invention, the casing is provided with guides at the sid-es and a take-up roll at the top on which the curtain is wound with its margins running in the guides. The lower end of the curtain is fixed to a substantial rigid cross rail that comes to the window sill when the curtain is down. The take-up'roll is spring-operated but the spring mechanism is not of sufiicient strength to itself Wind the curtain thereon. It is merely strong enough, as the term implies, to wind and store the curtain when it is slacked off and the roll is relieved of its weight. The cross rail referred to is provided with driving and transmission mechanism to which is geared a tracking means in the present form of a sprocket chain having its ends anchored in the casing at top and bottom, respectively. When the driving device is motivated, it causes the rail and hence the curtain to climb up or down the frame as the Operator may desire. In other words, the driving and driven elements run on the chain instead of the chain running through them.

In one instance of this disclosure, the driving device is hand operated. In a modification, an electric motor' having a remote control is substituted though otherwise the structure is the same.

Referring more particularly to the drawings and first to Fig. 1 thereof, I indicates generally the window casing, 2 the sill thereof, 3 the casing of the take-up roll at the top of the window casing, 4 the curtain, 5 the lateral guides in which its margins run (duplicated at either side), 6 the magazine fixed to the top of the guide number 5'l for feeding the bearing balls to the sockets 'l in the curtain, 8 the rigid cross rail also running in the guides to which rail the lower end of thercord is secured, and 9 a driving pulley mounted substantially centrally of this rail on the inner side. In the embodiment of all but Fig. 9, an endless pull cord lil is supported on a small pulley ll fixed centrally to the top of the window casing or, specifically in the present case, to thebottomof the casing 3 of the take-up roll. One reach of the pull cord passes around the driving pulley 9 and both reaches thence hang in parallelism in a loop |2 which it will be understood is suiiiciently long to be accessible to the Operator, say, from the floor when the curtained window is high on the wall. When one reach of the pull cord is drawn upon, the curtain Will rise, as hereinafter described, and When the other reach is pulled upon the mechanism will be reversed and the curtain will be lowered. As before stated, the spring of the take-up roll is not sufiicient to raise the curtain, but it does relieve the Operator of part of its weight in raising while' weight of the curtain but tends to and anyway,

as will be seen from what follows, the operator is Working with such mechanical. advantage that the weight of the curtain is immaterial.

Referring now more particularly additionally to Figs. 3 and 9, the fixed sprocket chain tracking means is indicated at IS', each chainv at its lower end being anchored as by the screw eye M in the sill 2 and its upper end to a slotted bracket |5 with clamp screws l6 by means of which the bracket may be adjusted to give the proper tension to the chain. At each end of the cross rail 8 is a pair of sprockets |1 one above the other. The chain proceeds downwardly under the upper one of these sprockets, is looped about one of a pair of transmission sprockets l:8 'near the center of the rail and thence returns over the lower sprocket down to its anchorage in the sill. It is' these sprockets l1 that do the climbin'g up and down the chain as the transmission sprockets IB are rotated in one direction or the other, as will be understood. One of these transmission sprockets is` mounted on the shaft |9 of driving pulley 9 and the other upon Va parallel stud 29 of its own. Y

Referring now additionally toV Figs. 4, 5', 7 and 8, shaft l9 and` stud 2B have fixed thereto intermeshing gears 2| and 2-2 of equal pitch: and the sprockets IB arealso of edua-l pitch so that the climbing gearing atv the two sides of the curtain act in unison, the one being driven from the other. The transmission isicarriedV by a gear box 23 set into the rail from the front-and held by-screws 24V on its front plate 25so that withthe pinning and. unpinning'of the rear sprockets 13 the transmission and driving gear may be applied and removed as a unit.

The driving gear 9 is provided with'a housing 26 on a carrier plate 21 on the extension of which are provided upper and lower idle pulleys 28 turning on studs 29 and it is these pulleys that form the aforesaid loop in the left hand reach of thepull cord HJ that passes it around the driving pulley 9. Then the Operator-pulls downwardly on thev right hand reach of the pullV cord. the latter will, through the upper pulley 28, rotate the driving pulley 9 to the right and cause the sprookets |1 and [8 to climb up the chains. When the left hand reachof the pull cord from below the driving gear is drawn downwardly at I2, it will reverse the operation and cause the curtain to climb down the chains.

It is desirable tolock the curtain positively when not actually being operated to hold it against Winding in intermediate positions ifV desired. This, with an automatic release upon lowering manipulation of the pull cord, is accomplished in the following manner in combination with the driving gear: On the inner side of the front plate 25 of the gear b0x23 is-provided azeavvi at 39 (see Figs. 5 and 6) a pawl 3| counterweighted at 32 so that it will normally engage with and lock gear 2! fixed on shaft |9 against clockwise movement. Adjacent to it the said plate 25 is slotted at 33 to receive a pin 34 projecting rearwardly from carrier plate 21 and housing 215. Normally this pin is held at the imit. of the upper end of the slot by the weight of the pulleys 28 and the extension of the carrier plate Offset from the drive shaft center on which shaft the plate and housing rock freely. When, however, the right hand reach of the pull cord is drawn down, thereby exerting upward tension on the left hand reach above the driving gear and on upper pulley 28 to rotate the driving pulley 9 clockwise and raise the curtain, the carrier 28-21' briefly rotates bodily counterclockwise and the pin 34 is stopped 'at the bottom of slot 33, during which movement it kicks out the pawl 3! and holds it out as long as the raising tension is maintained. When the pull cord is released, the carrier plate 21 drops back to normal and the gravity' pawl reengages the driving gear.

Fig. 8 shows a light seal for the engagement of the rail 8 with frame sill 2 consisting of a fiange 35 on the-latter taking into slot 35 in the under face of the rail.

Fig. 9 shows substantially the same construction and mode of operation, except that a motor 31- is substituted for the pull cord lil and driving pulley 9. Thisvmotor is suitably mounted on the cross rail 3, thel housing and carrier plate 26 and 21 for the pulleys 28 of the hand operated device, of course, being: removed along with the driving pulley and pull. cord. The shaft 38 'carries a Worm' 39 meshing with a wormgear 49; on drivingshaft [93, the latter being geared up in the same manner as previously described shaft 19. The worm gear is in a suitable housing 41 projecting from-gear box plate 21 and acts as a reduction. gear for converting theV speed ofa relatively small and light low horsepower motor to driving advantage andmotivation ofV the curtain operating parts to a. mere adaptable rate substantially equal tothat of the hand gear. Of course, the locking mechanism is not required in this motor driven embodiment as the worm gearing prevents a` back drive. i

The motor is of the reversible type and of suitable phase accordingv to conditions` of power supply and is controlled by a suitable switch placed at a convenient point,.which switch may be individual to each window or control anumber of them simultaneously. Thisbeing old practice known. toV those skilled in the art, as. are all the electrical circuit. arrangements involved herein, it isfthought unneces'sary to supply a. diagram of the wiring. Sufiice it to say that 42 and 43 are the lead wires to the motor issuing from a cable 44 xedat one end in. a bushing 45 in the cross rail 8 and at the other end to a suitable. outlet box 46 secured to the casing I or. adjoining structure.

As the motor rises and falls with its driving gear and the curtain, the cable must follow it but preferably as inconspicuously and safely as possible. I hence fasten to the casing I on the rear side of the curtain a well 41 intowhich the cable is looped. Hanging on the loop by means of a pulley 48= on its yoked end is a weight 49 that rises and falls within the Well with the movements of the curtain and keeps the loop taut at all times as well as reducing the Wearl to which it might otherwise be subjected.

Of course, the duration of the period of operation of the motor to completely raise or completely lower the curtain may be regulated manually by opening and closing the motor circuit through the main switch, but I prefer to make it automatic so that the motor will break its own circuit when it has driven the curtain to either its upper or lower extreme, as in the cases where a number of motors are controlled by the same switch and the curtain openings are of different lengths requiring different periods of travel. To this end, I provide in the circuit of the motor circuit breakers mechanically controlled by plungers 50 and mounted at top and bottom of the cross rail. Plunger 50 shuts off the motor at the upper limit by striking the take-up roll housing 3, as shown in dotted lines in Fig. 9, While plunger 5| does the same thing by striking the sill 2 when the curtain ls completely lowered as it is shown doing in the same figure. i

To'provide for emergencies, such as the burning out of the driving motor or failure of the power supply line, I make arrangements whereby the power drive may be eliminated so that the curtain can be raised and lowered by hand when necessary. This consists of the provision of a suitable clutch drive between the shaft I!!a and the sprocket I 8. In the present embodiment and as shown in section in Fig; 9, shaft lfla in furtherance of this object is provided with a longitudinally movable core 13 looked for rotation therewith and provided with a cross head on its rear end normally interlocking for rotation with pins 14 projecting from the rear face of the sprocket l8. When it is desired to disconnect the motor, the core is thrust rearwardly beyond and out of engagement with pin 14 whereupon the sprocket idles with the movements of the curtain instead of acting as a driving element, this particular sprocket being free on the shaft except for the clutch connection. This is an elementary form of clutch illustrative of the result to be obtained but any of. a variety of similarly known clutches attaining the same object can be used in the same capacity.

A curtain screen or other flexible closure with operating means constructed in accordance with my invention, as before stated, is particularly adapted for the operation of large and heavy and otherwise inaccessible installations and is a unit that it is not difficult to apply and which seldom requires Servicing.

I claim as my invention:

1. In a mechanism for operating vertically reciprocatory closures and the like with reference to their supports, the combination with a driving device on the closure, of tracking means geared to the driving device and connected with the support, and a driven device on the closure adapted to climb said tracking means under impulse from the driving device.

2. In a mechanism for operating vertically reciprocatory closures and the like with reference to their supports, the combination with a driving device on the closure, of a sprocket chain geared to the driving device and connected with the support, and a driven sprocket on the closure adapted to climb the chain under impulse from the driving device.

3. In a mechanism for operating vertically reciprocatory closures and the like with reference to their supports, the combination with a driving device on the closure, of a sprocket chain geared to the driving device and connected with the support attop and bottom, and a pair of driven sprockets on the closure adapted to climb the chain in opposite directions under impulses from the driving member as the latter is operated in one or the opposite direction.

4. In a mechanism for operating vertically reciprocatory closures and the like with reference to their supports, the combination with a driving device on the closure, of tracking means geared to the driving device and connected with the support, a driven device on the closure adapted to climb said tracking means under irnpulse from the driving device, and means for operating the driving device comprising an endless pull cord geared to the same and a supporting pulley mounted on the support over which pulley the pull cord passes.

5. In a mechanism for operating vertically recip'rocatory closures and the like with reference to their supports, the combination with a driving device on the closure, of tracking means geared to the driving device and connected with the support, a driven device on the closure adapted to climb said tracking means under impulse from the driving device, and means for operating the driving device comprising a motor mounted on the closure and movable therewith.

6. In a mechanism for operating vertically reciprocatory closures and-the like with reference to their supports, the combination with a cross rail on the closure at its lower extremity, of a driving sprocket on'the cross rail, a sprocket chain passing over the driving sprocket and having its ends connected with the support at top and bottom, and a pair of driven sprockets on the cross rail adapted to climb the chain in opposite directions under impulses from the driving sprocket as the latter is operated in one or the opposite direction.

'7. In a mechanism for operating vertically reciprocatory closures and the like with reference to their supports, the combination with a cross rail on the closure at its lower extremity, of a driving sprocket on the cross rail, a sprocket chain passing over the driving sprocket and having its ends connected With the support at top and bottom, a pair of driven sprockets on the cross rail adapted to climb the chain in opposite directions under impulses from the driving sprocket as the latter is operated in one or the opposite direction, a pulley on the driving sprocket, and an endless pull cord running over the pulley to drive the same in opposite directions.

8. In a mechanism for operating vertically reciprocatory closures and the like with reference to their supports, the combination with a cross rail 'on the closure at its lower extremity, of a driving sprocket on the cross rail, a sprocket chain passing over the driving sprocket and having its ends connected with the support at top and bottom, a pair of driven sprockets on the cross rail adapted to climb the chain in opposite directions under impulses from the driving sprocket as the latter is operated in one or the opposite direction, and a reversible electric motor mounted on the rail to travel therewith and provided with reduction gearing operatively connecting it with the driving sprocket.

9. In a mechanism for operating vertically reciprocatory closures and the like with reference to their supports, the combination with a cross rail on the closure at its lower extremity, of a pair of driving sprockets near the center of the rail geared together for joint action, a sprocket chain looped over each driving sprocket and having its ends fixedat the top and bottom. of the support, respectively, a pair of sprockets arranged at each end of the rail meshing with one of the' sprocket chains and adapted to climb up and down thereon, and means for operating the driving sprockets. V

10. In a mechanism for operatingV vertically reciprocatory closures-'andthe like with reference to their supports, the combination vvith a cross rail on the closure at its lower extremity, of a pair of driving sprockets near the center of the rail geared together for joint action, a sprocket chain looped over each driving sprocket and Vhaving its ends fixed at the top and bottom of the support, respectively, a -pair of sprockets arranged at each end of theV rail meshing with one of the sprocket chains and adapted to climb up and down thereon, means for operating the driving sprockets, and a detachable separate plate on the rail carryingthe driving gear sothat the latter may be applied and removed as a vunit upon disengagement of the chains.

11. In a mechanism for operating vertically reciprocatory closures and the like With: reference to their supports, the combination'with a driving device on the closure, of a sprocket chain geared to the driving device and connected with the support, a driven sprocket on the closure adapted to climb the chain under impulseV from the driving device; said driving device embodying a rigid mounting on the closure, a main pulley having a shaft bearing in the mounting and carrying a ratchet, a pawl on'the mounting normally engaging the ratchet -to lock the closure ink agiven position, a carrier having a limited rotary movement on the pulley and. adapted to dislodge the pawl when moved in one direction, a pair of guide pulleys on the carrier Offset from the main pulley, and a pullcordlooped about'the main pulley and running over the guide-pulleys so that Vthe carrier Will rockand engage or disengage the pawl as the cord is pulled in one or the other direction.

12. -Inf amechanism for operating vertically reciprocatory closures and the like with reference to their supports, the combination With across rail onthe closure at its lower extremity, of a drivingv sprocketonthe `cross, rail, a sprocket chain passing. over the driving sprocket and having-its ends connected With the support at top and bottom, a `pair of driven sprockets on the crossrail adapted tofcliinb the chain as the driving sprocket is operated in one or the opposite direction, a. reversible motor mounted on, the rail to traveltherewith, said motor being pro.- vided With. reduction gearing operatively connecting i-t With the driving sprocket, a. well on the support, lead wires to the motor running from the support thereto and looped. within the Well, and a. weight on the loop-to takeupl slack in the lead wires as the motor rises andfalls with the cross rail..

ALVIN F. NYE. 

